In May of 1863, Confederate General PT Beauregard believed that the West was best protected by preparing for major offensives in Tennessee and Kentucky. This would relieve pressure on Vicksburg and the Mississippi River. Such an offensive would draw General US Grant to contend with this threat. Whatever the merits of Beauregard's Western strategy, General Johnston did not propose a bold offensive to President Davis. Johnston was of the opinion that defensive strategies were the priority for Middle Tennessee.
Confederate General Junius Daniel graduated from West Point in 1851. He was ranked 33 in his graduating class of 42 cadets. Junius Daniel served in the Eastern Theater of the US Civil War. He participated in the battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. He was defending Virginia in the 1864 Overland campaign when he was shot and killed on May 12, 1864.
Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith was a graduate of West Point's class of 1845. He ranked 26th in his class.
James Longstreet held the rank of major general in the Confederate army. He graduated 54th in the West Point class of 1842.
Confederate General Lloyd Tilghman graduated from West Point in 1836. Among the 49 cadets that graduated that year, General Tilghman ranked 46th. General Tilghman was killed at the Battle of Champion Hill in 1846 while directing a Confederate artillery battery.
General Leonidas Polk graduated from West Point in 1827. Among his 38 graduating members of his class, he ranked 8th. Polk is best known as defending Atlanta in 1864. He was an Episcopalian minister and had been promoted to the rank of major general. General Polk was killed from a cannon shot while observing Union artillery positions in Georgia.
Confederate General George Edward Pickett graduated with the West point class of 1846. He ranked last in his class of 59 students.
Confederate General John C. Pemberton graduated from West point in the class of 1837. He ranked 27th in a class of 50 graduates.
Confederate General Lafayette McLaws graduated from West Point in 1842. He ranked 48th in his class of 56 cadets. He saw important action in the Battle of Antietam in 1862.
Confederate General George W. Rains graduated from West point in 1842. Among his graduating class of 56 cadets, he ranked third. He is best known for his work in torpedoes in the US Civil War. He was the younger brother of Confederate General Gabriel Rains.
It ended any hopes of Confederate domination of Tennessee and the West in general.
General Leonidas Polk
Confederate General Braxton Bragg graduated form West Point in 1837. He ranked fifth in his class that had fifty graduates that year. General Bragg played a large role in the Western Theater of the US Civil War.